About one in four people in Lincoln County, Oregon, has a disability
In Lincoln County, 23.3% of people reported a disability. That is higher than in 92% of U.S. counties.
More distressed than 76% of U.S. counties.
What drives Lincoln County's score
In Lincoln County, jobs weigh most: the score for jobs is 89.5. Housing costs come next, at 88.1.
The County Distress Index looks at five parts of household money trouble in Lincoln County: jobs, late payments on loans, income and the safety net, collections and bankruptcy, and housing costs. Each part is scored from 0 to 100, and a higher score means worse off than other counties.
Lincoln County does better than most counties on two measures: people with a car or retail loan behind (3.9%, August 2025) and people with a credit card behind (4.4%, August 2025).
A longer bar means more trouble. See how the county score works.
- 89.5 of 100
Jobs
Biggest factorUnemployment through Sep 2026; adults not working, 2020–24 Census survey
- Unemployment rate, average over the latest year5.9% · Oct 2025 to Sep 202692nd percentile
- Adults 25 to 54 not working28.7% · 2020 to 202486th percentile
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- 88.1 of 100
Housing costs
Renters, 2020–24 Census survey; HUD's fair market rents, fiscal year 2027
- Renters paying half their income or more in rent26.2% · 2020 to 202490th percentile
- Rent on a two-bedroom as a share of the median income25.7% · fiscal year 202786th percentile
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- 68.7 of 100
Income and safety net
Poverty and income, 2024; disability and insurance, 2020–24 Census survey
- People below the poverty line16.3% · 202472nd percentile
- Children below the poverty line22.5% · 202474th percentile
- People with a disability23.3% · 2020 to 202493rd percentile
- People without health insurance7.9% · 2020 to 202450th percentile
- Median household income (lower income, longer bar)$65,436 · 202453rd percentile
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- 49.5 of 100
Collections and bankruptcy
Credit records, August 2025; bankruptcy filings, 2025
- People with unpaid debt sent to a collector18.4% · August 202532nd percentile
- Bankruptcy filings per 100,000 people169.2 · 202566th percentile
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- 33.8 of 100
Late payments
Credit records, August 2025; credit scores, second quarter of 2026
- People with a credit card behind4.4% · August 202531st percentile
- People with a car or retail loan behind3.9% · August 202531st percentile
- People with a subprime credit score37.1% · second quarter of 202637th percentile
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Sources: Urban Institute, Debt in America; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey; U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Fair Market Rents and Census income; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics; Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. County Distress Index by American Default Research, from data through Sep 2026.
Where the money in Lincoln County comes from
Benefit checks are Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid paid on people's behalf, veterans' benefits, and food and income support, so a high share usually means an older population, low pay, or both. In Lincoln County, 31.8% of residents are 65 or older (Census Bureau, 2024), against 17.2% nationally that year.
Cents of every dollar of income, 2024
Lincoln County
Oregon
United States
- Pay from work
- Investments and rent
- Benefit checks
In Lincoln County, benefit checks' share of income has more than doubled since 1969, reaching 31.7% in 2024, but pay from work still brings in about one and a half times as much as benefit checks
In Lincoln County, Oregon, benefit checks' share of income more than doubled from 1969 to 2024, reaching 31.7%; pay from work is plotted alongside. Every fifth year and 2024 are shown.
- Benefit checks
- Pay from work
The share of households in Lincoln County getting SNAP food aid had its largest drop, from 20.6% in 2020 to 17.5% in 2021.
The share of households in Lincoln County getting SNAP food aid was at its highest on the chart in 2016 and has since fallen to 21.1%
Low on the chart: 14.4% in 2009. Households getting SNAP, every year; each bar is a five-year survey estimate ending that year, so neighboring bars share most of their data, Lincoln County, Oregon.
How Lincoln County has changed
Lincoln County's population doubled to 51,212, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1974 to 1979, reaching 33,608. Residents, yearly estimate, every fifth year and 2024, Lincoln County, Oregon.
The jobs count covers work located in the county; the population count covers residents.
The number of jobs located in Lincoln County rose by about a third to 18,580, the highest on the chart
Biggest rise: 1990 to 1995, reaching 15,958. Yearly average of jobs covered by unemployment insurance, every fifth year and 2025, Lincoln County, Oregon.
| Measure | Then | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rateBLS LAUS | 1990 5.9% | 2025 6.0% |
| People below the poverty lineCensus SAIPE | 1989 14.7% | 2024 16.3% |
| Median household incomeCensus SAIPE | 1989 $21,526 | 2024 $65,436 |
The table uses 6.0% for 2025; the score uses 5.9% for the latest year (Oct 2025 to Sep 2026), both from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Figures are as each agency published them, not adjusted for prices.
Dated events in Lincoln County's history
1936
Bridges constructed across bays at Waldport, Newport, and Siletz in 1936 during Great Depression as federally funded projects. Wikipedia
1996
A thunderstorm in January 1996 did $1.5 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2012
A flood in January 2012 did $3 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2012
A flood in January 2012 did $2 million in property damage. NOAA Storm Events Database
2015
Heavy rain in December 2015 did $1,240,000 in property damage and killed one person. NOAA Storm Events Database
2020
The county's largest recorded population was the 2020 Census count of 50,395, which is also its most recent census. Census Bureau
1893
Created February 20, 1893 from Benton and Polk counties. Wikipedia
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Since 1964
23 federal disaster and emergency declarations have covered Lincoln County, 12 of them for flooding. FEMA
Lincoln County beside its neighbors
Lincoln County scores higher than all four counties that border it. Of the group, Lincoln County gets the largest share of its income from benefit checks (31.7%).
| County | Score | Poverty | Benefit checks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lincoln County, OR | 76 | 16.3% | 31.7% |
| Lane County, OR | 60 | 14.6% | 25.1% |
| Tillamook County, OR | 51 | 15.4% | 29.3% |
| Polk County, OR | 46 | 10.6% | 24.2% |
| Benton County, OR | 33 | 14.3% | 16.2% |
Distress score: American Default Research, County Distress Index, data through Sep 2026; each county scored against all 3,144. Poverty rate: Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates, 2024. Benefit checks: Bureau of Economic Analysis, 2024. Neighbors share a border, from Census county maps.
Is Lincoln County the poorest county in Oregon?
No, Lincoln County's poverty rate was 16.3% in 2024, 7th highest of 36 in Oregon (U.S. Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates). By that measure the poorest county in the state is Malheur County, at 18.5%. On our distress index, which counts more than poverty, Lincoln County ranks 4th of 36 in the state.
If you're behind on your mortgage in Lincoln County
Housing counselors approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development work at nonprofit agencies. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau describes free foreclosure-avoidance counseling, including help with mortgage-company conversations and available options Source CFPB.
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Legal Aid Services of Oregon
Legal aid
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HUD-approved housing counselors
Our help directory lists 1,010 agencies approved for foreclosure counseling, by state.
The score, its 14 measures and their sources, in one file. Free to use with credit to American Default Research.
Download the CSV for Lincoln County · Every U.S. county (CSV)
Sources and method
- American Default Research · County Distress Index Data through Sep 2026, built from Urban Institute, Debt in America; Equifax via the St. Louis Fed; U.S. Courts, Table F-5A; Census Bureau, American Community Survey; HUD Fair Market Rents and Census income; Bureau of Labor Statistics, Local Area Unemployment Statistics; Census Bureau, Small Area Income and Poverty Estimates. The County Distress Index is American Default Research's own calculation; the Urban Institute does not produce or endorse it. Our methodology
- Urban Institute · Debt in America Breno Braga, Signe-Mary McKernan, Samantha Atherton, and Kassandra Martinchek, "Debt in America," last updated November 20, 2025, https://datacatalog.urban.org/dataset/debt-america-2025. Licensed under ODC-By 1.0.
- Rent on a two-bedroom and household income The rent share compares HUD fair market rent for fiscal year 2027 with Census Bureau median household income for 2024. The page calls this the typical household's income.
- U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Economic Accounts (CAINC4) · income shares Where the money in Lincoln County comes from, 2024.
- History The agencies named in each row and the linked records above.